考研英语阅读篇章: 南非犀牛偷猎者被判77年监禁
阅读基础如滴水穿石，连载考研英语阅读篇章，希望大家能保持阅读好习惯。考研英语阅读篇章：南非犀牛偷猎者被判77年监禁
A South African rhino poacher has been sentenced to 77 years in prison.
南非一位犀牛偷猎者被判77年有期徒刑。
Mandla Chauke was arrested in the world famous Kruger National Park in 2011
for killing three rhino calves.
He was also convicted for the murder of his accomplice(共犯) who was killed
in a shoot-out with rangers.
Poachers killed a record 1,004 rhinos in South Africa in 2013, amid concern
that the animal could become extinct.
South Africa is home to 70% of the world's rhinos.
Chauke's lengthy sentence, imposed by a magistrate's court(地方法院), was
welcomed by South Africa's national parks service as a "huge triumph for the
rhino".
It gave a much-needed "boost to the anti-poaching teams who endure harsh
conditions for the protection of our parks", the parks service said in a
statement.
The court took the rare step of convicting Chauke for the murder of an
accomplice who was shot dead by park rangers.
It rejected his argument that he was coerced into poaching by his
accomplices, one of whom escaped.
Chauke was convicted of murder, rhino horn theft, illegal hunting,
trespassing and illegal possession of firearms and ammunition.
In 2012, a South African court sentenced a Thai national to 40 years in
prison for selling rhino horns.
Rhino horn sold illegally can fetch as much as $95,000 per kilo - more than
gold, according to the Bloomberg news agency.
Large syndicates are involved in a multi-billion dollar trade worldwide,
exporting the horns to both Asia and the Middle East.
Some people regard rhino horns as a status symbol and a healing agent,
despite a lack of evidence that it can cure illnesses.
ence of Antarctic waters.
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